People...

"Mxsmanic" wrote:

Today, well-paid jobs usually require skills
that no poorly-paid job will provide--which is why poorly-paid jobs pay
poorly, and well-paid jobs pay well.

Brilliant. How does he come up with this stuff?


--
Dan

"How can an idiot be a policeman? Answer me that!"
-Chief Inspector Dreyfus

"Jay Honeck" wrote:


People think we're nuts to be doing this business. Some days I agree
with them!

Mighty tough business model you've got: a value-added hotel in the commodity
accomodation price range.


--
Dan
T-182T at BFM

On 10 Oct, 16:05, Mxsmanic wrote:
Jay Honeck writes:
There are many intangibles about working a position like this that
make things worthwhile, however. Entry level positions are, to a
large degree, like school. You're learning skills while getting paid,
and -- in the end -- you should come out much more qualified for your
next job.

That would depend on the job. Today, well-paid jobs usually require skills
that no poorly-paid job will provide--which is why poorly-paid jobs pay
poorly, and well-paid jobs pay well. If one could prepare for a lucrative job
by taking a minimum-wage job, people would be falling over themselves trying
to get the minimum-wage jobs.

Today, not even an expensive stint at college prepares a person for a
lucrative job.


Not that you'll ever have any job..


Finding an employee who understands and appreciates this fact is, as
always, a trick. Most people don't plan their lives farther than
their next paycheck.

Younger generations have grown up with such uncertainty and rapid change that
planning ahead may not seem cost-effective.


Oh brother.

Bertie

"Dan Luke" wrote in message
...

"Mxsmanic" wrote:

Today, well-paid jobs usually require skills
that no poorly-paid job will provide--which is why poorly-paid jobs pay
poorly, and well-paid jobs pay well.

Brilliant. How does he come up with this stuff?

My guess is LSD.

Nomen Nescio wrote:
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----

From: Matt Whiting

Calculus alone won't solve this problem.

Matt

For finding the "happy medium"?
Of course it will. And quite easily.
The trick is to define Profit=f(Rates). That may not be quite as easy.
Then solving for the derivative dP/dR=0 should yield the inflection
point where an increase in rates will start to decrease profit, and a decrease
in rates will start to decrease profits.

But you don't know the Profit function. Now using just calculus tell me
how to find the optimal point.

As I said, calculus alone won't solve this problem.


I've used similar analysis with my machine shop to decide the questions:
Do I raise shop rates? And how much?
Should I bid a job at a loss to steal it from a competitor?
Do I drop another $150k on another CNC millng machine?
Do I hire another machinist? And how well trained does that machinist have
to be (ie. What do I pay?)?

Calculus alone won't solve any of these problems either.


One of my math professors, in college, used to like to say that "All problems
can be put in the form of a mathematical equation......and then solved".
I think that there ARE exceptions to this rule. But not nearly as many as most
people would tend to think.

Your professor was an idiot. Statements like this are why professors
should be required to have some work experience outside of the ideal
world of academia.

Matt

Nomen Nescio writes:

I couldn't count the number of times my resume moved toward the top of
the pile for ONE reason.
Age 14- picked Tobacco all summer for $1.25/hr.

You were told that your resume was moved to the top, and why? That's
extremely unusual.

You're ignoring a skill that a minimum wage job may not develop, but it
certainly verifies.............The ability to actually do WORK.

For every former fast-food employee who does well, there are a thousand who do
poorly.

You're ignoring a skill that a minimum wage job may not develop, but it
certainly verifies.............The ability to actually do WORK.

For every former fast-food employee who does well, there are a thousand who do
poorly.

A thousand? Hardly.

One common denominator I've found amongst successful people is that
they started work at a young age. Learning to work -- not necessarily
a specific skill -- is the key. And *that* is what makes succeeding
in entry-level positions critical to future success.

Conversely, the one common denominator I've found amongst people who
are not successful is that they think the world owes them something.
Because of this false belief, they live in a continual cloud of
confusion, wondering why they "never get ahead". It's sad to watch
because there is so little that can be done to help them.

Of the true failures I've personally known, without exception they
were either (a) mentally ill, (b) abusing drugs or alcohol, or (c)
lazy beyond belief. All three of these groups fall into "the world
owes me something" category, although for obviously different reasons.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Younger generations have grown up with such uncertainty and rapid change that
planning ahead may not seem cost-effective.

Oh brother.

What's funny is how this statement illustrates a complete lack of
historical knowledge.

Let's talk about "uncertainty". My dad graduated from high school in
1937 -- the depths of the Depression. He did whatever it took to
survive, including selling West Bend pots and pans door to door. (He
would cook a complete meal for a family, just to get in the door.
While cooking, he would tout the fantastic nature of the pots and
pans, and he did well...)

"Planning ahead" meant wondering if you'd eat on Friday. There was
no "welfare" -- only your wits.

When I graduated from college in 1981, inflation and interest rates
were at all-time highs. It made NO sense to save money, since it was
devaluing at 12% per year. Jobs were few, unemployment was
staggeringly high (by today's standards) -- yet we somehow managed to
survive and prosper.

"Certainty" in a free market economy is a pipe dream. Uncertainty is
what makes the system work, as it makes sure that everything and
everyone is operating at peak efficiency. You want certainty? Check
out Communism, and the collapse thereof.

History is full of the failures of these "certain" utopian economic
systems. (For one very close to my home, check out the history of
"the Amana Colonies" -- a communal system that existed here in Iowa
until the 1930s...)

Is it easy? Hell, no! But thanks to the free market system, we are
able to enjoy a standard of living that my father couldn't have
imagined back in 1937.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Jay Honeck wrote in
ups.com:

Younger generations have grown up with such uncertainty and rapid
change that planning ahead may not seem cost-effective.

Oh brother.

What's funny is how this statement illustrates a complete lack of
historical knowledge.

Let's talk about "uncertainty". My dad graduated from high school in
1937 -- the depths of the Depression. He did whatever it took to
survive, including selling West Bend pots and pans door to door. (He
would cook a complete meal for a family, just to get in the door.
While cooking, he would tout the fantastic nature of the pots and
pans, and he did well...)

"Planning ahead" meant wondering if you'd eat on Friday. There was
no "welfare" -- only your wits.

When I graduated from college in 1981, inflation and interest rates
were at all-time highs. It made NO sense to save money, since it was
devaluing at 12% per year. Jobs were few, unemployment was
staggeringly high (by today's standards) -- yet we somehow managed to
survive and prosper.

"Certainty" in a free market economy is a pipe dream. Uncertainty is
what makes the system work, as it makes sure that everything and
everyone is operating at peak efficiency. You want certainty? Check
out Communism, and the collapse thereof.

History is full of the failures of these "certain" utopian economic
systems. (For one very close to my home, check out the history of
"the Amana Colonies" -- a communal system that existed here in Iowa
until the 1930s...)

Is it easy? Hell, no! But thanks to the free market system, we are
able to enjoy a standard of living that my father couldn't have
imagined back in 1937.

Well, for now!

Bertie

Mxsmanic wrote in
:

Nomen Nescio writes:

I couldn't count the number of times my resume moved toward the top
of the pile for ONE reason.
Age 14- picked Tobacco all summer for $1.25/hr.

You were told that your resume was moved to the top, and why? That's
extremely unusual.

You're ignoring a skill that a minimum wage job may not develop, but
it certainly verifies.............The ability to actually do WORK.

For every former fast-food employee who does well, there are a
thousand who do poorly.


And still the worst of them is streets ahead of you.


Bertie